Case Number 10829: Small Claims Court

WALT DISNEY'S IT'S A SMALL WORLD OF FUN, VOLUME 3

The Charge

Present-day purveyors of the Disney cartoon catalog take us along for a
journey to any land where money can be mined. And, with this being just one of
four such excursions, the mighty dollar does indeed make this a small world,
after all.

The Case

Long-time lovers of the Disney kingdom and all that dear Uncle Walt conjured
up for their entertainment and amazement regularly wax nostalgic for the classic
pieces of animated magic. Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Goofy, Pluto, and others
are the staples of the Disney "cartoon consciousness," and the various
adventures and misadventures of the beloved characters are in constant demand by
those who have grown up with them and by those newer generations who have grown
to love them. And since "Disney" is generally regarded as synonymous
with "delightful," we would expect that any release of classic Disney
cartoons would be handled by the renowned studio with style, class, and
ultimately with the "guest" in mind.

But, today, Di$ney has arguably become synonymous with
"dollars."

It's difficult -- unpleasant, really -- to think of growing disregard of the
House of Mouse, but it would be naïve to deny it. When Michael Ei$ner
grabbed the reigns of the untainted empire back in 1984, the studio's tradition
of excellence in animation was summarily shoved aside in deference to stifling
bureaucracy and pocket lining. Ei$ner got the boot in 2005 and Robert Iger
stepped forward to lead the kingdom proudly past the dollar-driven dark days.
Unfortunately, even under Iger, Disney is more about marketing than it is about
magic anymore, and, to the point of this review, here's irrefutable evidence
that marketing angles, avenues of accessibility, and pathways to parlayed
profits is what drives this modern day Clubhouse.

With complete disregard of one of Disneyland's most cherished attractions,
Walt Disney's It's a Small World of Fun, Volume 3 arrives to sully the
integrity of Walt's original vision: that all the cultures of the world could
embrace their differences and rally their commonalities in altruistic and
uplifting ways. To that end, a disc with this title must certainly contain
poignant messages that help viewers understand different peoples from different
lands and learn how to foster and celebrate the unity to be had in this
"small world." Well, that would be a good message, but it won't be
found here. Instead, you'll get a quick and cost-effective a la carte offering
of Disney cartoons that are, shall we say, very loosely based on the
principle of "exciting adventures in exciting lands." This is a sham,
plain and simple.

But, to take a brief respite from the railing, here are the cartoons you'll
find on this particular volume, each assigned its own country of
representation:

* "Johnny Appleseed" (U.S.A.) Here we witness the legend of
John Chapman, more colloquially known as "Johnny Appleseed." As an
apple farmer in the colonial East Coast provinces, young Johnny sees others
heading West to explore new areas of the emerging nation but lacks the
confidence to make a go of it himself. Up pops an aged angel to help give Johnny
the courage and motivation he needs to take up his own trek westward. And so he
does, stopping at every plot of fertile soil to sow rows of apple seeds. By the
time his life on this Earth is done, he's single-handedly brought forth healthy
apple orchards from coast to coast and everywhere in between.

This is perhaps the most interesting of the tales on the disc, as this
17-minute short produced in 1948 is heavily anchored in spiritual sensibility.
Johnny sings how "the Lord's been good to me" (with voices and songs
by Dennis Day) just as the aforementioned angel appears to arm Johnny with the
Good Book to help guide him on his journey. The tale speaks to the power of
faith and trust and the gifts we each possess to help in the Grand Plan for
mankind. While there's no objection here to the message, it's just interesting
how such a now-polarizing message could be included, unaltered, in a current-day
product intended for mass consumption. The image quality here is decent with
good coloring, but far too many speckles and flecks to think it had been
dutifully restored in any way, shape, or form.

* "Pueblo Pluto" (Mexico) Well, this looks like a side-road
excursion just on the Arizona-Mexico border. Mickey Mouse and Pluto stop at a
dusty souvenir stand to gander at the local wares. While Mickey ventures inside
the shack, Pluto gnaws on a fresh bone. Beneath the planked porch, however, a
small pup sniffs the marrow-filled treat and snatches it away from the
flop-eared dog. Pluto gives chase and winds up corralled in a bracken of prickly
cactus. The small pup sees Pluto's dilemma and helps him escape the stranglehold
of succulents.

This one is just another routine Disney short from 1949, running a trim
6:21. The Mexican locale really doesn't have any bearing on the situations, as
this could likely occur anywhere (given the cactus would likely be replaced by
any other natural or man-made snare). The image quality is a bit shaky with
too-frequent graininess cropping up. Lightly enjoyable, but not memorable for
its setting at all.

* "Tiger Trouble" (India) It's 1945 and Goofy is on safari
in the deep jungles of India in search of the ferocious Bengal tiger. Mounted
atop his stout elephant steed, Goofy trudges along in hopes of bagging a prize
specimen. The tiger lays in wait and easily outwits and out-muscles the dopey
dog. Within the confines of the feature's 7:37 run time, it's the elephant that
saves the day and sends the tiger packing.

The Goofy cartoons are among the more clever of the Disney cavalcade thanks
to the usual voice-over narration that provides sly comment on the dog's feeble
nature. Although the narrator remains ever hopeful of Goofy's potential, the
humor lies in the miscalculations that afflict every Goofy outing. The image
quality here is decent; it's one of the cleanest of the bunch, showing only
occasional film damage and debris.

* "Alpine Climbers" (Switzerland) Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck,
and Pluto are scaling the Swiss Alps, but we're not exactly certain why. Donald
gathers a bunch of edelweiss only to lose them to a hungry mountain goat. Mickey
attempts to plunder a nest full of eagle eggs, much to the ire of the attending
mother eagle. Pluto succumbs to the elements and develops a fancy for a
grog-bearing St. Bernard.

This is the worst looking transfer of the bunch, the image bearing a
severely distracting dirty graininess throughout. Frankly, this has the visual
quality of a cheapo DVD full of public domain cartoons. This is really a
disgrace to see as certainly no consideration was given to the poor shape of the
source material. As a side note, Walt Disney himself provides Mickey's voice in
this 1936 'toon that runs 9:31.

* "Hello Aloha" (Hawaii) Odd, but I thought Hawaii was a one
of the fifty states. Well, according to this disc's driving notion, it's a
country all its own. This is actually the most amusing of the cartoons as we
again meet up with Goofy, playing the role of 1952's "everyman," a
put-upon, stressed-out office worker who simply can't take it anymore. Instead,
he quits his job and heads off the island paradise of Hawaii. Enjoying swaying
in a hammock, fashioning a grass hut, and partaking of the local luau, life is
tranquil -- that is, until the natives come looking for someone to sacrifice to
the rumbling volcano.

Again, the humor works in this one thanks to the patented voice-over
commentary that juxtaposes Goofy's exploits. The image quality of the 6:36
outing is quite good with strong colors and very little grain or source
defects.

Taken separately, the six cartoons here are generally innocent of any ill
intent, yet packaged as some sort of Disney excursion through the wonderful
lands of the world, it's a rip-off. There is no meaningful exposition to the
resident cultures of the different locales (save for the Hawaii lark), and
therefore the collection is without any context. It's just a collection of
cartoons brought forth in low-cost, low-effort manner. There are no extras to be
found, either.

Again, it's a shame to bag on the joy that was once Disney, but with grabs
like this, its difficult not to find offense in blatant attempts to snag a quick
sale. The addition of the "limited time only" sticker on the disc's
cellophane wrapper further infuriates those who are tired of being exploited by
the Magic Kingdom's current caretakers.